1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a performance board, a test apparatus, a test method, a diagnosis board and a diagnosis method. More specifically, the invention relates to a performance board for the use of a test apparatus for testing semiconductor devices and the like, the test apparatus and a test method for testing the semiconductor devices and the like and a diagnosis board and a diagnosis method for diagnosing the test apparatus.
2. Related Art
A test apparatus for testing a semiconductor device has a test head containing a plurality of test modules for supplying a test signal to the semiconductor device to be tested and a performance board for properly connecting the respective test modules with respective terminals of the semiconductor device. The test apparatus tests the semiconductor device by setting the performance board on which the semiconductor device is loaded on the test head (see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-108898 for example).
The test head has a plurality of slots for attaching the test modules and incorporates the test modules therein as they are attached to the slots. In the conventional test apparatus, each slot within the test head has been correlated with a certain type of test module to be incorporated in advance and its degree of freedom has been low.
Lately, there has been proposed a test apparatus adopting an open-architecture method. The test apparatus adopting the open-architecture method allows the test module to be attached to any slot regardless of type thereof and disposition of the test module in the test head to be freely rearranged.
When the test modules are incorporated in the test head, the test apparatus diagnoses whether or not each test module properly operates. The test apparatus diagnoses the test modules by placing a diagnosis board on the test head, instead of the performance board.
By the way, the performance board had to be made per arrangement of the test modules in each time in rearranging the disposition of the test modules in the test head. Thereby, it has been costly.
Still more, circuits and wires on the performance board in the test apparatus for simultaneously measuring a plurality of semiconductor devices is divided into regions per semiconductor device to be simultaneously measured. For example, a test apparatus for simultaneously measuring four semiconductor devices has four wires formed on the performance board.
A diagnosis board for use in diagnosis is also normally divided into regions per semiconductor device to be simultaneously measured in correspondence to the performance board. Therefore, the diagnosis board has the same size with the corresponding performance board. However, the diagnosis board can normally diagnose all test modules if a diagnosing circuit corresponding to one semiconductor device is constructed. It thus causes an excess space, increasing the cost.